U.S. patent number 11,442,422 [Application Number 16/667,206] was granted by the patent office on 2022-09-13 for method for devising a schedule based on user input.
This patent grant is currently assigned to AI Incorporated. The grantee listed for this patent is Ali Ebrahimi Afrouzi. Invention is credited to Ali Ebrahimi Afrouzi.
United States Patent |
11,442,422 |
Ebrahimi Afrouzi |
September 13, 2022 |
Method for devising a schedule based on user input
Abstract
Some aspects include a schedule development method for a robotic
floor-cleaning device that recognizes patterns in user input to
automatically devise a work schedule.
Inventors: |
Ebrahimi Afrouzi; Ali (San
Diego, CA) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Ebrahimi Afrouzi; Ali |
San Diego |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
AI Incorporated (Toronto,
CA)
|
Family
ID: |
1000004425929 |
Appl.
No.: |
16/667,206 |
Filed: |
October 29, 2019 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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15449660 |
Mar 3, 2017 |
10496063 |
|
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62302914 |
Mar 3, 2016 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B25J
9/161 (20130101); G05B 19/0426 (20130101); A47L
11/4011 (20130101); B25J 11/0085 (20130101); G05D
2201/0203 (20130101); G05B 2219/25419 (20130101); A47L
2201/04 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G06F
17/00 (20190101); A47L 11/40 (20060101); B25J
9/16 (20060101); B25J 11/00 (20060101); G05B
19/042 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;700/257 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Mancho; Ronnie M
Parent Case Text
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a Continuation U.S. Non-Provisional patent
application Ser. No. 15/449,660, filed Mar. 3, 2017, which claims
the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/302,914,
filed Mar. 3, 2016, each of which is hereby incorporated by
reference.
Claims
The invention claimed is:
1. A method for scheduling cleaning by a robotic floor-cleaning
device, comprising: providing, to a software application executed
on an internet-connected device, a new schedule or an adjustment to
an existing schedule for operating a cleaning unit of the robotic
floor-cleaning device; receiving, by the control unit of the
robotic floor-cleaning device, the new schedule or the adjustment
to the existing schedule from the software application; inferring,
by the control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, a
schedule for operating the cleaning unit of the robotic
floor-cleaning device comprising at least one date and time using a
machine learning algorithm that uses at least a plurality of user
inputs historically provided to the software application, the at
least a plurality of user inputs designating at least a plurality
of schedules previously executed by the robotic floor-cleaning
device at a particular past date and time specified in each of the
plurality of schedules; storing, by the control unit of the robotic
floor-cleaning device, the new schedule or the adjustment to the
existing schedule in a database; actuating, by the control unit of
the robotic floor-cleaning device, the cleaning unit based on the
new schedule or the adjustment to the existing schedule; actuating,
by the control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, at least
one motor to drive a plurality of wheels of the robotic
floor-cleaning device based on the new schedule or the adjustment
to the existing schedule; and controlling, by a control device of
the robotic floor-cleaning device, the robotic floor-cleaning
device to move along a movement path based on the new schedule or
the adjustment to the existing schedule.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting, by the
control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, the inferred
schedule to the software application; providing, to the software
application, an adjustment to the inferred schedule; receiving, by
the control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, the
adjustment to the inferred schedule from the software application;
and updating, by the control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning
device, the database based on the adjustment to the inferred
schedule.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the machine learning algorithm
comprises reinforcement learning.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the new schedule or the
adjustment to the existing schedule comprises at least a date and a
time.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the internet-connected device
comprises at least one of: a remote control, a smartphone, a
computer, and a tablet.
6. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving, by an
interface of the robotic floor-cleaning device, a new schedule or
an adjustment to an existing schedule for operating the cleaning
unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device; and receiving, by the
control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, the new schedule
or the adjustment to the existing schedule from the interface.
7. A system for scheduling cleaning by a robotic floor-cleaning
device, comprising: a software application executed on an
internet-connected device; and the robotic floor-cleaning device,
comprising: a chassis; a set of wheels coupled to the chassis and
driven by at least one motor, a control device for controlling
movement of the robotic floor-cleaning device; and a tangible,
non-transitory, machine-readable medium storing instructions that
when executed by the control unit effectuate operations comprising:
receiving, by the control unit, the new schedule or the adjustment
to the existing schedule from the software application; inferring,
by the control unit, a schedule for operating the cleaning unit of
the robotic floor-cleaning device comprising at least one date and
time using a machine learning algorithm that uses at least a
plurality of user inputs historically provided to the software
application, the at least a plurality of user inputs designating at
least a plurality of schedules previously executed by the robotic
floor-cleaning device at a particular past date and time specified
in each of the plurality of schedules; storing, by the control
unit, the new schedule or the adjustment to the existing schedule
in a database; actuating, by the control unit, the cleaning unit
based on the new schedule or the adjustment to the existing
schedule; actuating, by the control unit, the at least one motor to
drive the set of wheels based on the new schedule or the adjustment
to the existing schedule; and controlling, by the control device,
the robotic floor-cleaning device to move along a movement path
based on the new schedule or the adjustment to the existing
schedule.
8. The system of claim 7, wherein the operations of the robotic
floor-cleaning device further comprise: transmitting, by the
control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, the inferred
schedule to the software application; receiving, by the control
unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, the adjustment to the
inferred schedule from the software application; and updating, by
the control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, the database
based on the adjustment to the inferred schedule.
9. The system of claim 7, wherein the machine learning algorithm
comprises reinforcement learning.
10. The system of claim 7, wherein the new schedule or the
adjustment to the existing schedule comprises at least a date and a
time.
11. The system of claim 7, wherein the internet-connected device
comprises at least one of: a remote control, a smartphone, a
computer, and a tablet.
12. The system of claim 7, wherein the operations of the robotic
floor-cleaning device further comprise: receiving, by an interface
of the robotic floor-cleaning device, a new schedule or an
adjustment to an existing schedule for operating the cleaning unit
of the robotic floor-cleaning device; and receiving, by the control
unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device, the new schedule or the
adjustment to the existing schedule from the interface.
13. A robotic floor-cleaning device, comprising: a chassis; a set
of wheels coupled to the chassis and driven by at least one motor,
a control unit; a cleaning unit; a control device for controlling
movement of the robotic floor-cleaning device; and a tangible,
non-transitory, machine-readable medium storing instructions that
when executed by the control unit effectuate operations comprising:
receiving, by the control unit, a new schedule or an adjustment to
an existing schedule for operating the cleaning unit from a
software application; inferring, by the control unit, a schedule
for operating the cleaning unit using a machine learning algorithm
that uses at least a plurality of user inputs historically provided
to the software application, the at least a plurality of user
inputs designating at least a plurality of schedules previously
executed by the robotic floor-cleaning device at a particular past
date and time specified in each of the plurality of schedules;
storing, by the control unit, the new schedule or the adjustment to
the existing schedule in a database; actuating, by the control
unit, the cleaning unit based on the new schedule or the adjustment
to the existing schedule; actuating, by the control unit, the at
least one motor to drive the set of wheels based on the new
schedule or the adjustment to the existing schedule; and
controlling, by the control device, the robotic floor-cleaning
device to move along a movement path based on the new schedule or
the adjustment to the existing schedule.
14. The robotic floor-cleaning device of claim 13, wherein the
machine learning algorithm comprises a reinforcement learning.
15. The robotic floor-cleaning device of claim 14, wherein the
operations of the robotic floor-cleaning device further comprise:
transmitting, by the control unit, the inferred schedule to the
software application; receiving, by the control unit, an adjustment
to the inferred schedule from the software application; updating,
by the control unit, the database based on the adjustment to the
inferred schedule; and updating, by the control unit, at least one
input to the reinforcement learning model based on the adjustment
to the inferred schedule.
16. The robotic floor-cleaning device of claim 13, wherein the new
schedule or the adjustment to the existing schedule comprises at
least a date and a time.
17. The robotic floor-cleaning device of claim 13, wherein the
internet-connected device comprises at least one of: a remote
control, a smartphone, a computer, and a tablet.
18. The robotic floor-cleaning device of claim 13, wherein the
operations of the robotic floor-cleaning device further comprise:
receiving, by an interface of the robotic floor-cleaning device, a
new schedule or an adjustment to an existing schedule for operating
the cleaning unit of the robotic floor-cleaning device; and
receiving, by the control unit of the robotic floor-cleaning
device, the new schedule or the adjustment to the existing schedule
from the interface.
19. The method of claim 1, wherein the user input designates a
schedule for operating the cleaning unit of the robotic
floor-cleaning device.
20. The system of claim 7, wherein the user input designates a
schedule for operating the cleaning unit of the robotic
floor-cleaning device.
Description
FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE
The disclosure relates to methods for devising schedules for
robotic floor-cleaning devices based on historical data.
BACKGROUND
Robotic floor-cleaning devices may have scheduling systems that
allow users to input schedules such that a robotic floor-cleaning
device may turn on automatically at any preset time. Alternatively,
a user may simply turn on a robotic floor-cleaning device to begin
work at any time. Some users may benefit from a robotic
floor-cleaning device that operates on a schedule but that does not
require the user to take the time or energy to set up the schedule.
A method for automatically devising a robotic floor-cleaning device
work schedule based on user inputs may be beneficial.
SUMMARY
The following presents a simplified summary of some embodiments of
the techniques described herein in order to provide a basic
understanding of the invention. This summary is not an extensive
overview of the invention. It is not intended to identify
key/critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of
the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some embodiments of
the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more
detailed description that is presented below.
Some embodiments provide a schedule development method for a
robotic floor-cleaning device that automatically devises a work
schedule based on historical data. Some embodiments record user
inputs indicating days and times to start work. Some embodiments
develop a work schedule for future work based on the recorded
inputs.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a process for devising a suggested
work schedule, according to some embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS
The present invention will now be described in detail with
reference to a few embodiments thereof as illustrated in the
accompanying drawings. In the following description, numerous
specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough
understanding of the present inventions. It will be apparent,
however, to one skilled in the art, that the present invention may
be practiced without some or all of these specific details. In
other instances, well known process steps and/or structures have
not been described in detail in order to not unnecessarily obscure
the present invention. Further, it should be emphasized that
several inventive techniques are described, and embodiments are not
limited to systems implanting all of those techniques, as various
cost and engineering trade-offs may warrant systems that only
afford a subset of the benefits described herein or that will be
apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Some embodiments disclose a robotic floor-cleaning device,
including: a shell; a chassis; a set of wheels; at least one motor
to drive the wheels and move the robotic floor-cleaning device in a
direction on a surface; a control device to activate and control
the robotic floor-cleaning device's movement, a clock, a memory
unit to store data, an input/output means connected to the control
unit and a cleaning unit connected to the chassis. In some
embodiments, the control unit is configured to save a date and time
set by a user when the robotic floor-cleaning device should be
turned on. In some embodiments, the control unit is further
configured to suggest a work schedule based on the saved data to
the user using the input/output means.
Some embodiments disclose a method for setting a work schedule for
a robotic floor-cleaning device including: monitoring use times of
a robotic floor-cleaning device over a preset period of time;
storing the times and dates the robotic floor-cleaning device was
turned on in a database; developing a suggested work schedule based
on the stored data; and proposing the suggested work schedule to
users through an input/output device.
Some embodiments provide a method including: monitoring use times
of a robotic floor-cleaning device over a preset period of time;
storing the times and dates the robotic floor-cleaning device was
turned on in a database; devising a suggested work schedule from
the stored data using a machine learning technique; proposing the
suggested work schedule to users through an input/output device;
accepting user adjustments to the suggested work schedule through
the input/output device; and adding the user adjustment data to the
database for use in devising future work schedules.
One skilled in the art will appreciate that different embodiments
of the invention may use different machine learning techniques such
as, but not limited to, supervised learning, unsupervised learning,
reinforcement learning, semi-supervised learning, etc.
In some embodiments, the input/output device may be wireless and
may send and receive signals to and from remote devices, such as,
for example, remote controls and smartphones.
In some embodiments, the floor-cleaning device may be scheduled
directly via a user interface positioned thereon.
In some embodiments, inputs from a user and outputs from the
robotic floor-cleaning device may be provided through a software
application installed on an internet-connected device, such as a
smartphone, a computer, or a tablet.
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a process for devising a suggested
work schedule, according to some embodiments. The process includes
monitoring activation dates and times 100, storing the dates and
times in a database 101, developing a suggested work schedule based
on the stored data 102, and proposing the suggested work schedule
103.
In some embodiments, the suggested work schedule is developed based
on times the robotic-floor cleaning device was turned on as per
user-provided instruction. In some embodiments, the times the
robotic-floor cleaning device was turned on is stored in a
database. In some embodiments, the suggested work schedule is
followed by the robotic floor-cleaning device after approval by the
user of the suggested work schedule. In some embodiments, the
suggested work schedule is developed based on data stored in the
most recently updated database, wherein the database is
continuously updated with new times the robotic-floor cleaning
device was turned on.
In some embodiments, the suggested work schedule is developed based
on the times the robotic-floor cleaning device was turned on that
are stored in the database and using a start time that is the mean
or median of the start times in the database, a start time that is
the mean or median of a subset of the start times in the database,
and/or using a machine learning algorithm to devise a work schedule
based on the times in the database.
* * * * *